Posted on 03/04/2016 1:03:57 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
The results of last night's Super Tuesday primary elections would have, in a normal Republican Primary cycle, made Donald Trump the presumptive Republican nominee for President and most certainly driven the also-rans, Dr. Ben Carson and Ohio Governor John Kasich from the race.
But in case you hadn't noticed, this isn't a normal Republican Primary election cycle.
Normally in Republican politics the stronger a candidate for the nomination gets the more the self-interested powerbrokers in the professional political class come around to supporting him.
However, this year the GOP appears to be fracturing into three segments: the "vote for Trump to bulldoze DC" segment, the establishment "#NeverTrump" segment, and the limited government constitutional conservative Ted Cruz segment.
On the surface these three segments of the GOP appear to be irreconcilable, and strictly on the basis of style and personality they might very well be irreconcilable.
And so far, the "bulldoze DC" segment is winning most, but not all, of the primaries and has accumulated the most delegates, putting Donald Trump on a steady path to a majority of delegates and the Republican nomination for President.
This record of winning - in a normal year - would tend to bring the Party insiders around to accepting the leading candidate and uniting the Party.
Except this year the more Trump wins, the more the Party establishment has become opposed to him and afraid of where his bombastic unfiltered, and often ill-considered, policy pronouncements will lead the country.
Washington, like Wall Street, hates uncertainty and due to his many flip-flops, changes of heart and broken deals, Donald Trump is the very embodiment of political uncertainty.
Grassroots conservative voters also hate uncertainty, but of a different sort. They hate the uncertainty of voting for an allegedly conservative candidate only to discover that when the candidate is elected he does exactly the opposite of what he promised to do during the campaign; like Marco Rubio did on amnesty for illegal aliens, spending and supporting the Obama - Hillary Clinton disasters in the Middle East.
Much as the Republican establishment would like to present Senator Marco Rubio as a viable alternative to Donald Trump his candidacy is a non-starter for a huge percentage of grassroots conservatives who are simply not going to vote for a candidate who has the same position on amnesty for illegal aliens that Hillary Clinton has and wholeheartedly supported Obama's failed policies in the Middle East.
On the basis of style and personality there's no reconciling these three segments of the Republican Party, but on the basis of substance - that is what comes after the election - there is one candidate who can unite all three segments of this cycle's Republican electorate and that's Ted Cruz.
What's more, not only does Senator Cruz have a record of going head-to-head with Donald Trump and winning, he does it by appealing to the same voters that might otherwise vote for Trump, and together their segments make up a solid majority of the Republican base.
We contrast that to the policies of the outspoken #NeverTrump billionaires and millionaires now backing Marco Rubio whose views on amnesty for illegal aliens, same-sex marriage and the cultural issues represent a tiny RINO minority in the Republican electorate.
Were Cruz to drop out and leave the field to Marco Rubio polls suggest few of his votes would actually go to Rubio - they'd go to Trump or be off the table entirely as cultural conservatives found it impossible to hold their noses and vote for a candidate whose lifestyle has strayed so far from the principles of Biblical living.
While it is true that many Republican Party insiders have expressed a personal antipathy for Senator Ted Cruz it is because he has embarrassed them by holding their feet to the fire to actually produce on their campaign promises, and deep down inside they've got to realize that if they'd listened and done what Cruz wanted Donald Trump wouldn't be running away with the Republican nomination for President.
Even South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham who backed Jeb Bush after his own campaign fizzled and once joked about killing Ted Cruz said last night, "we may be in a position where we have to rally around Ted Cruz as the only way to stop Trump."
Senator Graham is starting to get the picture on how the numbers are adding-up in this year's Republican primary cycle and he knows that while Donald Trump's sins, political and otherwise, are many (see CHQ Chairman Richard A. Viguerie's columns "Hide the Women and Children: What A Vote For Donald Trump Really Means" and "Trump's New York Values: The Poster Boy For Debasing American Culture" and Florida Family Action's two-minute video for a partial list) Ted Cruz's only political sin is demanding that his Republican colleagues in the Washington fulfill their campaign promises and actually fight for the principles espoused by the Republican Party Platform.
The next 10 days are going to be very good for Donald Trump. If we’re still fighting beyond that, I think you can count on another President Clinton.
Memo to GOP Establishment: you can’t buy Trump, however Cruz will gladly take your money.
Yes, only Don Trump’s skirts are clean. That’s why Cruz scammed students in his “university” and gave money to the Clintons.
No sale.
Was it Fred Thompson?
If Cruz, or worse, Rubio, gets the nomination, then Hillary Clinton will be the next President of the United States...and, once again, the Stupid Party will have clutched and lost the game.
The Republican Establishment reminds me of Charlie Brown repeatedly trying the kick, only to have Lucy yank the ball away at the last second.
A very well articulated, but alas, totally clueless analysis of the situation by the writer.
Works for me.
When the votes are counted on March 15th, it should be over and hopefully the folks at GOPe HQ will realize that. But I’m afraid they aren’t going to.
The GOPe figured this one out a couple weeks ago, and they’ve already invited Cruz over to sit down and ‘Have a Cigar’.
Personally, I don’t think I could stomach having to watch Hillary lay her hand on a Bible and swear to ‘protect and defend’ anything. I’ll spare her the 3rd degree burns and stick with Trump.
Neither can he beat Hillary, Sanders, nor any other Dem!
Trump's supporters are loyal, they won't leave him, the blacks, disaffected Dems, and many other of his supporters will NEVER vote for Cruz; not EVER!
Cruz is a regional candidate and not even a good one, at that. So HOW is he going to win enough delegates and the 8 state outright minimum to be the nominee?
This article is just HOGWASH and a pipe dream!
That's what is so great about the position the Establishment finds themselves in: both of their great hopes have floundered (Bush & Rubio) and now they're faced with backing Ted Cruz against Donald Trump.
From FR's perspective, with about 75% of members supporting Trump and 25% percent for Cruz, that's perfect, because the Establishment is damned if they do, and damned if they don't.
If Freepers would just drop all the needless acrimony and watch the chips fall where they may, things will be fine.
But if Ted Cruz sells his soul in order to help the Establishment take out Trump, by which act he will then be beholden to the Establishment, that will completely taint the voter enthusiasm and splinter the party.
Thus Ted Cruz has a few possible paths:
I believe I've already seen signs of Ted Cruz moving in the direction of option #2, what with his absurd sliming of Trump with the David Duke issue.
Playing the race card, especially when its basis is known to be a scurrilous falsehood, is one of the most lowdown tricks in the book, and is the single greatest reason for my growing skepticism of Cruz's character.
Go, Trump, go! Things will be OK. The GOP will enjoy a massive demographic shift in its favor, and cripple the Democrat party for decades to come. And the People will get pro-American policies which could benefit all Americans. And the Washington status quo of both parties will be shaken to its core.
The alternative is a Hillary Presidency against the backdrop of a hopelessly splintered, or even disintigrating, GOP.
Go, Trump go! It's the only way to be sure...
I support Ted and am sending him my small gifts every week through this heavy season of primaries and caucuses before Easter.
But I’m not happy with Ted’s light response to matters out West. There’s a rebellion out there and people who participated in it, including a prominent Trump supporter in New Hampshire yesterday are being arrested.
Ted better get way up to speed with a relevant message for the folks in Idaho where there’s also a primary next Tuesday.
How about ‘free the Hammonds’ unjustly sent to prison as ‘terrorists’ for setting a backfire to protect their ranch in Oregon.
If Ted doesn’t notch it up on things like this, the Trump bulldozer is running him over big time.
I’m thinking about not sending Ted any money after next week.
Two thoughts. (1) If Trump does very well between now and the 15th, he should definitely have a very serious look at his personal security as the GOPe may be willing to do anything. Anything. (2) If Cruz does well as manages to overtake Trump, which is still possible, he should know that the GOPe will also be against him. Particularly if it came to a Brokered Convention - the GOPe hates him (almost) as much as they hate Trump, and at the convention they will definitely not support Cruz.
Yes, I will only vote for billionaires from now on, too.
Cruz wants a war with China, Russia and North Korea, to create jobs and to satisfy campaign donors in key industries.
Do you live in Colorado or Washington State?
Trump gave money to Cruz. Has he given it back?
Trump gave money to Hillary, Bill, Harry Reid, Planned Parenthood, Romney and Nancy Pelosi. Have they given it back?
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